In a letter last month, the group urged U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and policymakers to reinstate Federal Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated students and eliminate a question on the FAFSA that asks if the applicant has had a drug conviction.

Financial aid

UNC offers need-based financial aid to help off-set the costs of attendance. Eligibility for financial aid is based on information provided by students on FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and the CSS/PROFILE. Parents’ income and assets factor into how much a student will receive. Students must request financial aid yearly and fill out new forms each time.

UNC tries to meet the full extent of a student’s financial need. Nearly half of the students receive aid, and 1 in 3 students borrow to afford school. Average student debt is lower at UNC than at similar schools.

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A report from the U.S. Department of Education shows the U.S. is lending more money in federal student loans than it is being repaid. In just four years, subsidy costs for income-driven repayment have increased by over 700 percent.

Of the 30,000 out-of-state residents who applied to UNC this year, only a handful will be granted admission, and even fewer will be offered a financial aid package. This roadblock has prevented thousands of potential out-of-state students from accepting their offer of admission, and the Office of Scholarships and Student Aid has its hands tied by North Carolina policies.
Full tuition cost in addition to room and board can cost upwards of $50,000 for out of state students attending UNC.

On the 224th annual University Day, Chancellor Carol Folt introduced a scholarship fund which aimed to recognize UNC students, faculty, staff or alumni who have advocated for inclusion and diversity. These individuals, deemed Bridge Builders, will be rewarded for their efforts with a scholarship in their name.

Every UNC student can fondly recall the day they received their acceptance letter. But, for some, the good news is quickly swept aside, only to be replaced by anxiety about whether financial aid will be sufficient enough to attend.

For most UNC students, college is already more work than play. For over 5,000 of these students, however, they choose to take on a greater workload to fund college expenses through the federal work-study program.